Do I Need A Divorce Lawyer Near Me?

When it’s clear the marriage is over, it’s necessary to hire a Westborough divorce lawyer for guidance through the divorce process so you have someone by your side to help you protect your future. But, if it’s the first time going through a divorce, there’s usually a great deal of uncertainty about who exactly should be hired as that lawyer. Often, people sit down in front of their computer, open their browser, and then do a Google search for “Divorce lawyer near me.”

Then a bunch of websites pop up, along with a bunch of ads. Figuring out which one to click on can be daunting. It is like when you go to a restaurant that has too many items on the menu, and you can find yourself going down a rabbit hole of reading about the law and the lawyers that it’s easy to get overwhelmed, close the computer, and decide to try again another day.

WHAT ARE YOUR OPTIONS WHEN YOU CHOOSE A DIVORCE ATTORNEY?

Hopefully, this blog will help you narrow down your options.

1) Are you looking for a firm or a solo practitioner? A firm generally has a group of lawyers who can support each other and all of the clients. A solo practitioner is one attorney who deals with every client. A firm will usually have greater resources and connections to provide to its clients while also having multiple attorneys who can fill in if one attorney goes on vacation or takes a family leave. Working with a solo practitioner means that you will only work with one attorney for the life of your case. There’s been a number of cases we have had against solos where the opposing counsel will say they have a conflict and need a continuance. Because they have no alternative, the court date has to be pushed out, prolonging the ability to move the case forward. In our firm, the client has the option of continuing the case because they want to make sure their lead attorney is going to be there or to have an alternative attend the hearing instead. It’s all about options.

2) Either way, look for an attorney who practices primarily in the area of family law. You can usually tell by looking at someone’s website whether they have a very developed site providing a lot of information about divorce and custody. There are some firms that practice in a few different areas, but might have a family law division. Make sure that their family law division is well established and has a number of attorneys specifically focused on family law within the firm (unless you’re looking to hire a solo practitioner).

DOES YOUR ATTORNEY HAVE SUBSTANTIAL DIVORCE EXPERIENCE?

3) Even if they have an amazingly informative website, ask specifically about the actual experience the attorneys that work there have. There can be a big difference between an attorney who states they have practiced family law for over 20 years and an attorney who may have only been at a firm for a brief period of time. Why? Because experience doesn’t come from years – it comes from actual casework conducted. Do you want someone who has done one divorce per year or do you want someone representing you who has worked on over 75 cases per year? This is important because each case brings unique challenges. The more cases you’ve represented, the wider range of issues you’ve actually had first-hand experience with. You already have an advantage when your Westborough divorce attorney is very familiar with the court and the Judge.

4) Is the attorney strong with litigation but with a mediator’s mindset? There are some attorneys who lean toward attempting to settle everything to avoid having to appear before a Judge. There are other attorneys who want to scorch the earth and take everything to the Judge. The best attorneys are ones who understand the benefits of settlement and agree that a settlement is usually in the client’s best interest, but who, at the same time, have no problem putting on the boxing gloves and entering the ring of the courtroom when the situation justifies it. We’ve had too many people come to us complaining they felt “forced” to enter into a settlement just to settle. Unfortunately, once you enter into a Judgment, it can be very hard to change the terms after the fact no matter whom you hire. Make sure you do it right the first time. Hire a Westborough divorce lawyer who is focused on negotiating a settlement at every chance they get, but if you have something worthwhile to fight over once you’ve done your cost-benefit analysis, they have no problem litigating strongly for you in the courtroom.

WHAT’S IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER WHEN CHOOSING A DIVORCE ATTORNEY?

So, will you be able to find a Westborough divorce attorney through your “divorce attorney near me” search? Absolutely! Just make sure the attorney you enter into that retainer agreement with is everything you’re hoping for by doing your due diligence and researching them before you jump in that relationship!

Call us today at  774-703-3755 to go through your free case evaluation so we can decide if we are both a great fit for each other!